reiter



2 Sh us-Sheet 1. (Men M. REITER & G. SANDER. 6e

PNEUMATIC ACTION FOR ORGANS. No. 254,046. Patented Feb. 21,1882.

'z 2 1 i i S il F /Z/Q/ a WHY? 2 Shq et sSheet 2:

(No Model.)

M. REITER & G. SANDER.

PNEUMATIC AGTION FOR ORGANS.

Patented Feb. 21,1882.

' UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MORITZ REITER, OF BERLIN, AND GUSTAV SANDER, OF BRESLAU, ASSIGNORS TO OSWALD DINSE AND PAUL DINSE, OF BERLIN, GERMANY.

PNEUMATlC ACTION FOR ORGANS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 254,046, dated February 21, 1882,

Application filed December 1, 1881.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, Mom'rz REITER, a subjeot of the King of Prussia, residing at Berlin, German Empire, and GUSTAV SANDER, a subject of the King of Prussia, residing at Breslau, German Empire, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Pneumatic Actions for Organs; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact de- Io scription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters or figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

The object of our invention is to utilize the principles of aerodynamics for operating the valvesin musical instruments, such as organs, harmoniums, and other like instruments in which air is compressed in a wind-chest and set free by opening a valve or valves through the medium of one or more keys of a key-board to produce the desired tone.

The further object of our invention is to util- 2 ize the above-described principles to efiect an instantaneous opening and closing of the windducts when the keys are manipulated, to facilitate the manipulation of the said keys and avoid the usual fatigue inherentto the manipu- 0 lation of the keys of this class of instruments; and the invention consists essentially in certain details of construction of wind-chests for organs, and in the combination therewith of devices for accomplishing the above-described 5 results, as fully described hereinafter, and shown in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a transverse section of so much of a wind-chest of a musical instrument as will illustrate our invention. Fig. 2 is alongitudinal and Fig. 3a horizontal section thereof, the latter being taken on thebroken line at m of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section of the wind-chest through the air-ducts. Fig. 5 is a section on a larger scale of one of the valves, to better illustrate its construction. Figs. 6, 7, and 8 illustrate modified arrangements of valves, and Figs. 9 and 10 illustrate the manner in which wind-chests of ordinary construction may be provided with our improved system of valves.

The principles of our invention are carried (No model.)

out practieall y by apeculiar and novel arrangement of valves that are not operated directly through the medium of the keys,butindireetly and by the pressure of the air within the windchest that is to say, the valves are operated by the escape of a limited quantity of air from the wind-chest after the performer has opened the proper register or stop and depressed a key orkeys to open an eduction-valve. We have named these valves pneumatons, as expressive of their being operated by compressed air.

In the accompanying drawings, in which like letters of reference indicate like parts, A is the wind-chest, having the usual air ducts or ports, a, in its sound-board B, through which the compressed air passes to the pipes or reeds or other sound-producing devices.

The pneumatons P P are double valves, composed of a cylindrical portion, provided with an annular flange or valve-head, p, a stem, p and a second valve-head, 19 The pneumatons P are seated within cylindrical valve-seats O, that communicate by a valve-port, 0, with a horizontal air-duct, (1, within which is located the valve-head p of the pneumatons P, and which valve-head opens and closes the port 0, while the valve-flange p is adapted to close the port 0 leading to air-ducts hereinafter described. The valve-head p of the pneumatons I is normally held upon its seat over the ports a by a spring, S, on the one hand, and on the other by the pressure of the air within the 8 wind-chest exerted upon' its under side. As each pneumaton P has an auxiliary pneumaton, P, below it that is influenced by the stoppulls, while the pneumatous P are indirectly con trolled by the keys ofthe key-board, we designate the upper pneumatonsasclavier-pnew matons and the lower as stoppneumatons.

As shown 'in Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4, the windchest, as well as the bearings for the pneumatons P P, are provided with air-ducts, ar- 5 ranged as follows: In its bottom A the windchest A has fiat superposed air-ducts D and D, arranged at right angles to but not in communication with each other. Each of these ducts D D is open at one end to the atmos- 10o phere, said opening being normally closed by a valve, V and V, respectively, as shown in Figs], 2,and4. These valves are held to their seats by a spring, S, of suflicient strength to prevent the valve from being lifted 05 its seat by the pressure of theair within the duct. By

means of this arrangement the resistance of the valves beyond that required to hold them to their seats against the air-pressure may be adjusted to a minimum, so that the slightest exertion on the part of the performer will throw the valves open and relieve him of the fatiguing exertions attending the manipulation of the key-board of organs or like musical instruments of ordinary construction.

The pneumaton P is in communication with the air-duct D by means of a vertical air-duct, d and the horizontal air-duct d, and the pneumaton P is in communication with the duct D by means of like vertical and horizontal ducts (Z 11 respectively formed in the valvebearings O. Therelativc arrangement of the pneumatons and air-passages, as plainly shown in the drawings, is such that compressed air from the wind-chest willunder certain circum stances pass around the pneumatons PP and through d d and (Z (1 into D D, respectively, although the two pneumatons and their respective air-ducts are not in direct communication'w'ith each other,butindirectl y so through the valve-head p of the stop-1meumaton P.

The operation of the valve system is as follows: The wind-chest being filled with compressed air and the elavier-pneumatons P in their normal position closingtheair-ports leading to the sound-produein g devices, the air within the chest presses upon the under side of the pneumatons P, since the latter do not fittightly within their bearings, which is of great importance, not only because each valve or pneumaton P becomes thus a balanced valve, but also for'the purpose of operating said valve, as will be presently explained. The pressure of the air upon its upper and under surfaces is equal, and said pressure is not only exerted upon the inner surface of the cylindrical portion 1) of the pneumaton, but also upon the under face of the valve-head p. The stoppneumatons P are also fitted loosely within their bearings, and when in'their normal position their valve-heads 19 close the ports 0 to cut 011' all communications between their airducts and the wind-chest proper so long as the stop-valves V are closed. The stop-pneumatons P act by gravity-that is to say, when not lifted off their seat by the pressure of the air, as hereinafter described, they fall back into their normal position above described. When the parts are in the positions just set forth and one or more of the stop-valves V are opened by means of their stop-pulls, the air in the windchestA ispartially exhausted, since its passage through port e and ducts dPd Dis unobstructed. This outflowing air, however, carries the pneumaton P with it, lifting its valve-head p from its seat on port 0 and closing the port (2 with its valve-flan gep, to cut off further escape of air. This movement of the pneumatonP establishes communication between the valvechest and the ducts d d D through the pneumaton P, around which the air can pass freely, it being fitted loosely within its bearing or carrier O, as above mentioned. It will be seen that now no air can escape from the wind-chest, since the passage of the air to the ducts d d D is cut oit' by the closure of the port 0 If now, however, one or more of the valves V are opened by the depression of the corresponding key or keys, the wind-chest is again placed in communication with the outer air through the ducts D (Z d, the air rushes out, carrying with it the clavier-pneumatons P, their headsp uncovering the corresponding ports, a, to admit eompressedair to theirrespective sound-producing devices, and these will continue to speak so long as the valves V are open-that is to say, so long as the keys remain depressed. The downward movement of the pneumaton P brings its valve-flange 1) upon its seat on the face of the carrieror bearing 0 and prevents all further escape of air from the wind-chest, and will be held there pneumatically or by the air-pressure so long as the valvesV are open.

In Figs. 1,2,and4t some of the pneumatons P are shown in the position just described.

Itwill be seen that the opening or the clos ing of one of the valves V orV does not affect both the pneumatons, and that when one or more stop-valves V are open the instrument is in condition to admit of the manipulation of the keys of these stops so long as they remain open, and that the closure of any of the stopvalves throws thekeys of that particular stop out of operation. This is evident from the fact that the closure of a stop-valve, V, cuts off all communication between the outer air and the wind chest through the 'p'neumatons P and their duets D d d, and effects at the same time a closure of the ports a loading to the soundproducing devices.

Instead of one stop-pneumaton P, two such may be employed with each clavier-pneumaton. By means of this arrangement one stop of sound-producin g devices may be employed with two independent sets of keys without using more than one-stop-pneumaton for each set of keys and each tone.

In Figs 7 and 8 I have shown clack-valves in place of the stop-pneumatons P, arranged to operate in a manner similar to the latter pneumatons, the valve-stem p sliding within its bearing and the downward movement of the lower valve, P, being limited by a stop, 0, attached to the carrier 0. The valve'flangep of the pneumaton P may be dispensed with and the closure of the port 0 effected by the lower annular face of said pneumaton, as shown in Fig. 7.

To prevent the imperfect closure of the ports a by reason of the play the pneumaton P has within its bearing, and which may preventits being always elevated in a strictly vertical direction, we prefer to make it in two parts, the

valve-head p beingattachcd to the valve-stem p by means ofa pin, f, and we interpose between the valve head and stem a washer, F, of

some yielding material, such as soft leather or rubber. The connection between the valve head and stem is not a rigid one, the pinf being held in a socket of greater diameter than said pin to permit a limited play to the head 12 In this manner, when the pneumaton P is elevated to its seat on a line other than a true vertical line the head 11 will yield and form a perfeet closure of the port a. This may also be effected by means of a guide in which the valvestem is caused to slide, or by means of projections serving as guides attached to the inner periphery of the bearings C.

In Figs. 9 and 10 I have illustrated a windchest of usual construction having our improved valve system applied to the ordinary register channels or cells.

The valves or pneumatons P P are constructed in the form of a lever rotating upon a fulcrum, 19", that has its bearings in sheetmetal cheeks M. The valve P is made heavier than the valve P to keep the port a, that admits air to the sound-producing devices, normally closed. Said valve P carries a pin or valve-stem, m, that engages with an auxiliary valve, P, which in its normal position closes the port 0 of the air-duet D d.

If through the medium of one of the keys one of the valves V is opened, the pneumaton will remain in the described position as long as there is no compressed air in the cells N N N, &c. When, however, compressed air is admitted to one of the cellsthat N, for example-by opening the proper stop-valve its pressure is exerted upon the greater surface of the lower valve, P, which is carried to its seat upon port 0, and the valves P and P are opened. Thus the port 0 is again closed against the outflow of the compressed air, while such air is admitted to the sound-producing device and will continue to be admitted until the key that opened the valve V is released, to again close it when the pressure of the air in the cell From the above it will be seen that this principle of aerodynamics for operating the valves may readily be applied to wind chests of ordinary construction.

Having now described our invention, what we claim is- 1. In wind-instruments of the classdescribed, the combination, with the wind-chest, its airductsa,dd D, and d d D, and thevalvesV V, of the double valves P P, all constructed and arranged for operation substantially as and for the purpose specified.

2. The combination of the wind-chest, its air-ducts a, d d D, d d. D, and the valve-cas ings O, of the valves P P and VV, all arranged for operation substantially as and for the purpose specified.

3. The combination of the wind-chest, its air- (lucts (t, d d D, 61 61 D, and the valve-casings 0, open at one end and having ports 0 c 0 ot' the valves P P, each provided with a valvehead, 11 and a valve-flange,p, and the valves V V, all arranged for operation substantially as and for the purpose specified.

4. In a wind-chest for musical instruments ofthe class described,a valve-casing having a hollow cylindrical body, open at one end to form a valve-seat, and ports 0 0 c and airducts dd (1 41 in combination with the valves P P, all constructed, arranged, and operating substantially as and for the purpose specified.

In testimony whereof we atfix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

MO RITZ RE I'IElt. GUSTA V SANDE It.

Witnesses:

A. DEMELIUS, B. Ber. 

